Chapter 8
________
SIRRUS
WHAT HAVE YOU DONE? Endre roared as we flew away from Rensara and the canons of seething scalefire aiming for our bones.
The Gleiran King’s daughter hung from Zovai’s claws, torn dress blowing in the wind, red hair nearly glowing. The red—a vibrant color I’d never witnessed before in a human—shone in the sun. It should have matched the color of her spilled blood on the ground, as was planned.
Where he flew between us, the woman in his claws, Zovai was entirely silent.
What have you done?He asked again, quieter this time.
Zovai shook his head. I… I can’t explain it.
Try. The steel in Endre’s tone left no room for argument.
Endre banked to the south, and we followed, away from the capital. We knew without speaking where we would go now. There was too much risk to bring her straight back to Doro Eche, especially since she shouldn’t even be breathing.
Try, or I will kill her now.
The sky shattered with the force of Zovai’s roar. You will not touch her.
Silence reigned in the aftermath.
The connection between our minds roiled with his restless need to protect and claim. To hide her away like she was a treasure he couldn’t release.
Endre’s mind seethed too. With frustration and anger. I couldn’t blame him. The Elders would lay the responsibility on his shoulders, and he’d already taken too much from them. It was already bad enough that Z had to attack the Craisos royalty, because the weapons they wielded could be deadly on contact, and they got too fucking close.
We will discuss it when we arrive at Skalisméra. I make no promises.
A long silence filled with nothing but the beating of our wings and the wind rushing past.
She wasn’t afraid. Zovai’s voice was quiet and calm. No, she was. But she didn’t look at me with hate. Ran, yes, but when I had her cornered, she only looked at me with kindness. And resignation. As if even though I killed her, she would not blame me. That it would be a relief.
She touched me. Reached out and touched me, and said “please.”
I looked at him. I have not known you to be merciful, Z.
It is not mercy. A toss of his head had the sun glinting off his red scales. I brought my flames. Summoned them. My dragon would not allow her death.
Our dragons were not separate from us. We were the same, and yet we weren’t. The part of our minds that was dragon was old and submitted to instincts we long ago lost the ability to understand. And if our dragon decided something, there was no overriding it.
Smoke billowed from Endre’s mouth, and he flew a bit ahead of us, taking a turn breaking the air. Craisos and Gleira might pursue us with the intent to win her back.
That would have happened regardless, I pointed out. Neither Gleira nor Craisos would have let the insult of her death stand.No matter what, we were ordered to take action that would start a conflict.
Even Endre couldn’t argue with that.
Do you have a plan?Endre finally asked.
Zovai blew out a harsh breath. No, he admitted. I don’t. And I know that’s not good enough. But I could not let her die.
Something went still in my chest at the way he phrased it. Not that he couldn’t kill her, but that he couldn’t let her die.
We flew, arrowing for the southern side of the Bowl and the mountains that stood there. Well within dragon territory, still, though not the favored part of it. I nearly snorted. Not that the three of us were particularly favored.
If I were honest with myself, the mountains we raced for felt far more like home than the city nestled in the middle of rolling green hills and misty lakes. Even if it wasn’t our home on the eastern coast. The harshness of the peaks and the warmth of our smaller cities appealed to me more. The views and comforts of our true home called to me like nothing ever would.
We hadn’t been there in years.
Something in me settled, comforted that we weren’t returning to Doro Eche right away. I didn’t know how much time we would have, but I chose to be grateful for Zovai’s actions, however misguided they were, and whatever consequences would follow.
Regardless, once we reached our destination, Zovai may not have a choice. If we had to bind him to the ground in order to kill her, we would do it. What was one woman in the face of the world?
Her name, Zovai said into the silence as the sun began to sink. Her name is Katalena.